M. David StoneCardScan Executive 700cThe CardScan Executive 700C's core strength is its software. CardScan, the program, is among the best available for reading business cards of any random design, recognizing the text with OCR, and parsing it correctly to put the right pieces of information in the right fields.

Small footprint. Powered through the USB connection. Impressively accurate OCR and parsing of information. Exchanges data with Microsoft Outlook and other contact-management programs.

Cons

No automatic document feeder.

Bottom Line

The CardScan Executive 700C's core strength is its software. CardScan, the program, is among the best available for reading business cards of any random design, recognizing the text with OCR, and parsing it correctly to put the right pieces of information in the right fields.

When it comes to scanning business cards, CardScan is the name most likely to come to mind. CardScan, the company (formerly Corex Technologies, Inc.), has a well-earned reputation for its high-quality business-card scanners and software. The CardScan Executive 700c ($250 street) is one of several current offerings. It lives up to the company's reputation.

The Executive 700c is a sleek, gray-and-black 600-ppi color scanner that can accommodate cards up to 4 inches wide. It's also suitably small, weighing just 8 ounces and measuring 1.8 by 5.8 by 3.5 inches (HWD) not counting the output tray, which adds an extra inch to the depth. Setup is easy: install the software and connect to a USB port. It gets power over the USB connection, so you don't have to deal with a power cord.

The scanner, as tested, comes with CardScan version 7.0.1. We found it straightforward and easy to use. To scan, you simply feed cards into the scanner, one at a time. (There's no automatic document feeder.) When you're finished, choose Process. CardScan will recognize all the cards and show you a list of just those cards. You can then go through the list, checking or correcting each entry, and marking them as verified.

You can use the CardScan app as a database program to search for names and phone numbers. Each record includes an image of the card, so if anything was misread, you can look at the image of the original. You can also send the data to, or synchronize with Act!, GoldMine, Lotus Notes, Microsoft Outlook, and PDAs. In our tests with Outlook 2003, the synchronization worked without problems.

Of course, features are irrelevant if the software doesn't do a good job of recognizing the text and parsing the data into the right fields. CardScan 7.0.1 does this remarkably well, even on cards that confuse many programs because of background colors, odd fonts, or unusual layout. We saw only minor errors, and not many of those. Our one complaint about the software is a nag screen that shows repeatedly on startup, asking you to take a survey. However, a free software upgrade, which we saw in beta, will let you stop that screen from showing. CardScan says the upgrade will be available in May. Once it is, we'll like the softwareand the total packagea lot more.

CardScan Executive 700c

good

Bottom Line: The CardScan Executive 700C's core strength is its software. CardScan, the program, is among the best available for reading business cards of any random design, recognizing the text with OCR, and parsing it correctly to put the right pieces of information in the right fields.

About the Author

M. David Stone is an award-winning freelance writer and computer industry consultant. Although a confirmed generalist, with writing credits on subjects as varied as ape language experiments, politics, quantum physics, and an overview of a top company in the gaming industry. David is also an expert in imaging technologies (including printers, moni... See Full Bio

CardScan Executive 700c

CardScan Executive 700c

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